- Garlinghouse revised his prediction, citing supply-demand dynamics for potential market doubling by year-end
- Ripple’s CEO criticized lag in U.S crypto regulations
Bitcoin’S [BTC] halving is understandably clogging news cycle, with the anticipation attached to the event going through the roof over the past few days and weeks. Needless to say, optimism is high too, with many expecting Bitcoin and the rest of the crypto-market to log new highs. Ripple Labs CEO Brad Garlinghouse is no different, with the exec seeking to revise his previous prediction of a $5 trillion market capitalization by the end of the year.
In a recent interview with Fox Business, Garlinghouse said,
“I think, I probably under-predicted that.”
What’s driving the crypto-market?
In justifying his earlier prediction, Ripple’s CEO shed light on the fundamental drivers of the crypto-market. He noted the impact of decreasing supply due to events like the halving, coupled with increasing demand, especially fueled by ETFs.
He also highlighted the growing recognition of crypto as a valuable asset class. In fact, reflecting on its current $2.5 trillion market capitalization, he hinted that his previous forecast of $5 trillion by year-end might have been conservative.
“The market could potentially double by the end of the year.”
This underscores the complex interplay of factors driving the market and the importance of considering both short-term fluctuations and long-term trends.
Is the United States curbing the crypto-market?
Additionally, despite concerns about potential barriers from the legislation, Garlinghouse remains optimistic about Washington’s intentions towards crypto-regulations. He said,
“The United States has been one of the most problematic for the crypto-market.”
He added,
“Dubai, Singapore even the UK and the EU have seen legislative progress. The U.S has really been ‘behind the 8 ball’ on crypto.”
The exec believes the United States is lagging behind other countries in terms of regulatory progress and constructive engagement with the crypto-market. In doing so, he also critiqued Senator Elizabeth Warren’s characterization of crypto users as ‘bad actors.’
Additionally, he advocated that the U.S. should have “a pro-innovation” and “pro-compliance” cryptocurrency policy, with the same “not being a partisan issue.”
XRP’s future outlook
Finally, Ripple’s CEO shed some light on the launch of a USD-backed stablecoin on XRPL and Ethereum,
“Ripple has always been a bridge to this new world and the traditional world. People call it ‘trade-fi’.”
This demonstrates increasing confidence among XRP users, evident in the 2% hike seen in XRP’s value right before Bitcoin’s halving. Investors remain optimistic about XRP’s trajectory, reflected in the sustained high levels of positive sentiment surrounding the cryptocurrency.
Source: Santiment